The father of a woman who was attacked with an axe by her ex-boyfriend has condemned the SNP’s ‘soft-touch’ justice system for failing victims of crime.

Rosie Gittings was assaulted by Joshua Sutherland in 2021, causing severe injury and a risk to her life, while a student of theoretical physics at St Andrews University.

She moved to Canada last autumn, one month before her attacker was released after serving less than four years in jail for the attack.

He had been charged with attempted murder but pled guilty to a lesser charge of assault.

Rosie’s father Gwyn Gittings, 56, who lives in Muir of Ord, Easter Ross, has criticised the justice system for the trauma caused to his daughter, now 24, other family members and himself.

He said: ‘I’ve been to hell and back. All I want to do is get on with my life but the SNP’s soft-touch approach is failing victims of crime.

‘The trauma of the attack on my daughter has been difficult enough to deal with, but the lack of mental health support available has been atrocious.

‘Scotland’s health and justice systems are both in complete disarray, and it is those who need help the most who are being the worst let down.

Rosie Gittings was assaulted by Joshua Sutherland in 2021

 Sutherland showed up at the home of Ms Gittings, while high on drugs and armed with a weapon, and launched a brutal attack

‘The pathetic, weak approach taken by the SNP must end.’ Sutherland showed up at

Rosie’s home and launched a brutal attack while high on drugs and armed with a weapon.

When he was caught by police, he boasted: ‘I hit her in the head. She should be f****** dead. I should have chopped her up.’

Sutherland was sentenced to four years and four months, backdated to when he was taken into custody.

Mr Gittings said: ‘I don’t know where he is and I don’t want to know. I don’t want to know what I’ll do if I bump into him in the street. As it stands, he has more rights than I do.’

Rosie graduated with a masters in theoretical physics last autumn and has secured a job in Canada. 

Her father praised her achievements ‘after all she has been through’ adding: ‘You’ve got one of Britain’s, or definitely Scotland’s, greatest graduates forced out of living here with an axe-wielding psycho walking about, and forced to go to Canada where she is paying their top rate of tax.’

Mr Gittings said his daughter was contacted weeks after Sutherland was sentenced for a statement for a parole hearing, which was the first of four he had while in jail.

He said: ‘The first time was just before Christmas, while she had exams. I rang her and asked about the exams. She smashed it again, but then said, “Oh, and the other thing is he didn’t get out”.

‘I said, “That’s good” then put down the phone and blubbed for the rest of the afternoon, probably out of relief after what they had done to her and put her through.

‘We had four parole hearings and eventually he got let out a month after she left for Canada.’

Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar said his party has proposed action including the creation of a specialist victims’ support team, modernising the victims’ notification scheme and communications, preventing bail for those with histories of violence against women, and tightening the law so those with a history of domestic abuse cannot be bailed to their current or previous partner’s address.

He also pledged an expansion of pilots for independent legal representation to victims of serious sexual crime, and the establishment of a misogyny reduction unit so that violence against women and girls is treated as an issue of public health.

He said: ‘It is an absolute disgrace that victims of serious crime are being let down by this dismal SNP government.

Gwyn Gittings (right) was heavily critical of the justice system for the trauma caused to his daughter

‘When people commit despicable crimes, they should face the full extent of the law. It’s not good enough to take a light-touch approach to criminal justice.

‘I’ve been clear that a Scottish Labour government will fix the SNP’s mess by supporting our hard-working police officers, supporting victims of crime and restoring our justice system.

‘That is the difference a Scottish Labour government will make. We will be on the side of victims and make our communities safer, getting police back on our streets and cutting the backlog in our court system.’

An SNP spokesman said: ‘This was a horrific attack and we cannot imagine how distressing this has been for Rosie and her family. While we’ve strengthened policing and reformed the justice system, we want to go further to improve access to justice for victims and survivors, and ensuring our prisons and courts operate effectively. We will appoint Scotland’s first victims and witnesses commissioner, who will develop a victims’ charter.

‘We’re committed to making our justice system work for victims and keep our communities safe.’

Mr Gittings said: ‘What still burns with me is that when I reached out for help, Kate Forbes refused a meeting and sent me an email explaining four years was a long time in Scotland.

‘I can agree on that at least; it has been indeed. 

‘And when I hear the current SNP justice secretary talk about victims: Rosie had already given evidence at a police station on camera and was cross-examined by both sides before trial, but they still plea bargained beyond credulity just to save the expense of a jury trial.’